Car service history: what to record and keep

When you sell, the buyer asks for the invoices. When something breaks under warranty, the manufacturer checks that the car was serviced. Either way, what counts is a dated record of every job, with the mileage. Here is what to write down and what to keep.

The 6 details to record after every job

1. The date.
2. The odometer reading: many services are due "whichever comes first", in miles (or km) or in months.
3. Exactly what was done: "oil and oil filter change" rather than "service"; "front brake pads" rather than "brakes".
4. Parts and fluids: the oil specification required by the manufacturer, tyre size and brand, a timing belt part number.
5. The garage: name and address, to find it again or claim on a parts guarantee.
6. The cost, which belongs in the real cost of the car.

The paperwork to keep

• Invoices for servicing and repairs: they show the date, the mileage and the parts. They are your proof.
• MOT certificates (or roadworthiness test reports abroad).
• The manufacturer's service book, stamped, or a printout of the digital service record if your brand no longer uses a paper book.
• Invoices for tyres and parts you bought yourself.

Some manufacturers have replaced the paper book with a record kept by their dealer network. If you have the car serviced elsewhere, the garage's invoice is your proof: file it with the others.

Servicing outside the dealer network: do you lose the warranty?

In the European Union, no, under certain conditions. The European Commission sets out the principle (Commission FAQ, paragraph 69 of the Supplementary Guidelines): the manufacturer's warranty must not depend on having repair and maintenance work that the warranty doesn't cover carried out within its authorised network. Nor can it require the brand's own parts for replacements outside the warranty. This framework, Regulation 461/2010, was extended until 31 May 2028 by Regulation (EU) 2023/822.

In practice:

• repairs covered by the warranty are done by the brand's network;
• routine servicing can be done by an independent garage as long as it follows the manufacturer's schedule and specifications (intervals, oil standards, parts of matching quality);
• keep the invoices: they prove the servicing was done properly;
• an extended warranty bought several years after the car may have its own conditions, according to the same FAQ.

In the UK, a separate motor vehicle block exemption order has applied since 1 June 2023, with guidance from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on warranty conditions.

Your records also tell you what's next

The last oil change, with its date and mileage, gives you the next one. For common intervals, see our maintenance calendar; for inspections, when your MOT is due. Added up over a year, these invoices also show how much maintenance weighs in your cost per kilometre.

Keeping your service history in Staticar

The Staticar app works as a service book on your phone:

• Add a "Maintenance" expense and choose the type: oil change, timing belt, tyres (front, back or all), roadworthiness test, wash, parts or other.
• Enter the date, odometer, amount, garage (saved once with its address, phone and email) and a description of the work.
• The last job of each type becomes the starting point of the matching reminder: a logged oil change restarts the countdown to the next one.
• These expenses count towards your 12-month cost per kilometre.

Staticar doesn't store the invoices themselves: keep them separately, on paper or as photos. Your data stays on the phone, with no account and no Internet access.

Sources

• European Commission, FAQ on the application of EU antitrust rules in the motor vehicle sector, "Warranties" section.
• Regulation (EU) 2023/822 extending Regulation 461/2010 until 31 May 2028.
• The Competition Act 1998 (Motor Vehicle Agreements Block Exemption) (No. 2) Order 2023.